Method of preparing leather belting for gluing or cementing



Dec. 24, 1929. w. s. GRIFFITH 1,741,105

METHOD oF PREMRING LEATHER. BELTING Fox GLUING oa CEMEN'HNG Filed May14. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 24, 1929. w 5 GRlFFlTH 1,741,106

METHOD OF PEPARING LEATHER BELTING FOR GLUING 0R CEMENTING Filed May 14,1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 24, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEWINFRED' S. GRIFFITH, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO GRATON &

KNIGHT COMPANY, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSA-CEIUSETTS METHOD OF PREPARING LEATHER BELTING FOR GLUING OR CEMENTINGApplication led May 14, 1928. Serial No. 277,751.

This invention relates to a method of preparing leather belting toreceive glue or cement, particularly in the manufacture of doublebelting. It is essential that all of the 4 5 fleshy material be removedfrom the belt and that the entire ieshy side of the belt be uniformlyroughened before the cementing material is applied. This work has beenheretofore commonly performed by the use of hand scrapers and by the useof hand brushes or cards, a very laborious operation.

It is the object of my invention to provide an improved and novelprocess of preparing belts for cementing in which process the 15 leatheris subjected to a series of scratching,

skiving and brushing operations, which may be much more rapidly andeconomically performed than the old method above set forth.

In the preferred method of practicing my invention I also provide forreducing the laps in the belt to uniform thickness in addition toremoving the fleshand brushing the surface.

My invention further relates to the sequence of operations hereinafterset forth and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Mechanism suitable for the practicing of my invention' is shown in thedrawings in which A Y Fig. 1 is a sectional end elevation of ascratching machine for performing the first step in my improved method;

Fig.2 is a detail perspective view of a portion of a belt after thescratching operation has been performed;

Fig. 3 is a sectional end elevation of a skiving machine for reducingthe laps to uniform thickness;

Fig. 4 is a partial perspective view of a portion of the belt after theskiving of the lap has been performed;

Fig. 5 is a sectional end elevation of a second skiving machine adaptedfor removing y the fleshy material which has been raised on the surfaceof the belt by the scratching machine;

Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of a portion of the belt after thefleshy material has been removed therefrom;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of a portion of an inspecting table overwhich the belt preferably passes for purposes to be described, and

Fig. 8 is a sectional end elevation of a sec` 55 ond scratching orbrushing machine by which the flesh side of the belt is given auniformly roughened or brushed surface.

Referring first to Fig. 1, I have indicated a skiving machinecomprising' a frame 10 in 60 which a feed roll 11 is rotatably mounted.

A second roll 12 is freely rotatable in bearing blocks 13 above the feedroll 12. The blocks 13 may be raised or lowered by adjusting nuts 14e onstuds 15, mounted in the bearing 65 blocks 13 and the blocks 13 are heldyieldingly downward by springs 16. The feed roll 11 preferably has aleather covering 17 and the feed roll 12 preferably has a rubbercovering 18.

A brushing or scratching` roll 20 is mounted on a shaft 21, rotatable inbearings in the frame 10, and is preferably provided with a peripheralcovering 22 of card clothing. The shaft 21 and roll 2O are rotated athigh 75 speed in the direction of belt travel, and the feed roll 11 isdriven from the shaft 21 at relatively .slow speed.

A series of presser fingers 23 are mounted on a cross rod 24 supportedin brackets 25, 80 which are secured to a cross bar 26 and arepositioned by bolts 27, fixed in said cross bar and extending through afixed bearing 28 in the frame of the machine.

Springs 30 encircle the bolts 27 and move 85 the cross bar 26 andbrackets 25 as far to the right in Fig. 1 as is permitted by the wingnuts 29 on the bolts 27.

The fingers 23 are limited in downward movement-by the heads of screws33 threaded 90 into the cross bar 26 and the fingers 23 are held inyielding contact with the heads of the screws 33 by springs 35 mountedin said screws. Hardened steel discs 36 are preferably mounted in thelower faces of the presser fingers 23, to form contact members for theupper or grain face of the belt B. Front and rear supporting tables 37and 38 are provided for guiding the belt through the machine.

As the belt is fed slowly through the machine by the feed rolls 11 and12, the rapidly rotating card clothing on the scratching roll 20 tearsup the soft fleshy material remaining on the flesh side of the belt andcauses'it to stand out loosely from the lower face of the belt. Y

The belt B then passes to a skiving'niachine (Fig. 3) comprising a table40, a iiXed knife 41, a presser roll 42 having bearing portions 43rotatable in eccentric openings in discs 44, provided with gear teeth 45on their periphery.

The teeth 45 are engaged by an idle gear 46 which in turn is actuated bya gear 47 mounted on ashaft 48 having a handle 49 secured thereto. Theroll 42 is preferably covered with a substantial thickness of softrubber.

The eccentric bearing member 44 has an Vupwardly projecting portion 50to which a spring51 is attached, which `will restore the roll 42 toraised position as soonas the handle 49 is released. As the belt B isdrawn along over the table 40 and over the skiving knife 41, the softrubberroll `42 engages the upper surface of the belt and is available topress the same y'ie'ldingly downward.

` Whenever a splice in the belt approaches, it is Vnecessary to applypressure to the belt -to skive thelap, which is accomplished byVmanually rotating the eccentric bearing 44 vby means of the handle 49,thus lowering the presser roll 42 and placing sufficient pressure on thebelt to cause the leather to 'be skived off to substantially uniformthickness, as indicated vin Fig. 4.

A second skiving machine (Fig. 5) may be positioned adjacent but beyondthe skiving machine above described, and this second'machine comprises atable 52 having a skiving knife 53 mounted therein and a presser roll 54mounted'in vertically slida'ble vbearings 55 and held yieldinglydownward byl coil springs 56. As the belt B passes under the presserroll 54 it is pressed downward,

v sary. It is considered preferable, however, 'Y to use the secondskiving machine indicated in Fig. 5, leaving the mechanism shown in Fig.'.3 for evening the laps and setting the second mechanism permanently atthe right adjustment for skiving off the fleshy material.

After the belt B leaves the skiving machine in the condition indicatedin Fig. 6, it preferably passes over an inspecting table 60 (Fig.

looped. so that it will pass twice in succession through one or more ofthe different machines.

Having described forms of mechanism suitable for .carrying out myimproved operation, the method is as follows: f

The belt is introduced between the feed rolls 11 and 12 of the firstscratching machine, as indicated in Fig. 1 and the card clothing 22tears up the soft fleshy material'and causes it to stand out from thelower face of the".

belt. rlhe independent presser fingers cause all portions of the belttobe pressed yieldingly and uniformly against the brushing or scratchingcylinder, regardless of variations in the thickness of the belt.

AThe belt then passes through the skiving machine, which maybe set toskive off the fleshy material and which is provided with means forlowering the presser roll to exert increased pressure on the belt as alap is".

drawn over the knife 41. Instead of using the knife 41 and roll 42 forboth skiving off the fleshy material and also for evening ythe laps, Imay-use this mechanism for the Vlatter purpose only, providing a secondskiving" inechanism as above described for skiving ott the fleshymaterial as indicated in Fig. 5.

The belt is then drawn over the inspection table 60, permitting manualremoval lof any fleshy materialescaping the operation of the 1110scratching and skiving mechanisms, and the belt then passes through thesecond scratching machine, which is set to exert very light pressure onthe belt, thus causing the belt to be lightly brushed or scratched overits entire" 1115 surface and thus placing it in a satisfactory conditionto receive glue or cement.

I-Iaving thus described the several steps of my improved process,together with certain forms of mechanism by which the process' may becarried out, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosedotherwise than as set forth in the claims, butwhat I claim is 1. Themethod gluing or cenienting which consists in causing the fleshymaterial on the belt to extend loosely therefrom, cutting olf saidprojecting fleshy material, and thereafter uniformly A rougliening theilesh side of the belt.

- seo of preparing belts for" 2. The method of preparing belts forgluing or cementing Which consists in scratching the flesh side of thebelt to cause the fleshy material on the belt to extend looselytherefrom, skiving off said projecting fleshy material, and thereafteruniformly roughening the skived surface of the belt.

3. The method of preparing belts for gluing or cementing Which consistsin scratching the flesh side of the belt to cause the fleshy material onthe belt to extend loosely therefrom, skiving olf said projecting fleshymaterial, and thereafter lightly scratching the skived surface of thebelt to uniformly roughen the same.

4. The method of preparing belts for gluing or cementing Which consistsin scratching the iesh side of the belt to cause the fleshy material onthe belt to extend loosely therefrom, skiving off said projecting fleshymaterial, skiving the laps of the belt under increased pressure, andthereafter lightly scratching the skit/ed surface of the belt to roughenthe same.

5. The method of preparing belts for gluing or cementing which consistsin scratching the flesh side of the belt to cause the fleshy material onthe belt to extend loosely therefrom, skiving off said projecting fleshymaterial, manually removing any fleshy material remaining thereon, andthereafter uni- Ifgomly roughening the skived surface of the Intestimony Whereof I have hereunto af-l

